


The Tenth

by yeongwonhi (maraudering_malfoy)



Category: NU'EST, Produce 101 (TV), Wanna One (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Enemies to Friends, Forgive Me, Light Angst, M/M, Minor Character Death, Ong Seongwoo-centric, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, a futile attempt at a fic basically, a futile attempt at angst, also a futile attempt at tagging, and a futile attempt at summaries, plus a futile attempt for a title
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-12
Updated: 2017-11-20
Packaged: 2019-02-01 08:49:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12701478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maraudering_malfoy/pseuds/yeongwonhi
Summary: It was 2017, and the world let the marks on their skin dictate their life.or;a soulmate au in which people stop aging at 22 years old, until they meet their soulmate so they can literally "grow old together"





	1. 일

**Author's Note:**

> this ongniel drought made me crazy so i decided to make my own fic lmao
> 
> ALSO NWY COMES OUT LATER I'M ALREADY CRYING

_In the ancient times, it was believed that when the first humans were created by the gods, they originally had a head with two faces, four arms, and four legs, making them stronger than the gods. The first humans knew this, and threatened to stage an uprising against the gods. Zeus, angry at the humans’ pride and scared at the prospect of being overthrown, split the first men into two halves and scattered them around the world. It was said that the two halves would forever be looking for each other, and once they do find each other, they would be more powerful when united, and there would be no joy greater than that._

_In 1859, Charles Darwin proposed the Theory of Evolution. From apes, until the modern human, every species is constantly evolving. Change is the only constant thing in the world, and some attributes of the human beings would soon change in the near future._

_In 1948, the world was in a state of confusion when babies born in that year had a mark on their skin, with the position of the said mark varying among the babies. The mark looked like a tattooed symbol on the skin, with diverse shapes and sizes for different people._

_In 1977, the world was further thrown into disarray when scientist Linda Parks published her observation that people born from the year 48 onwards stopped aging at the age of 22 years old, with her presenting evidences varying from medical records, picture comparisons and such._

_In 1980, majority of the world accepted Parks’ theory, linking it with Darwin’s, saying that humans were biologically evolving yet again._

_In 1983, the world was confused yet again because 1950-born married couple Bruce and Elizabeth Jones stated that they aged, with them looking like they were in their late 20s, as opposed to what Parks theorized._

_In 1984, the world re-popularized the concept of “soulmates”, with Carter Black theorizing that the marks were “hints” for a person’s partner, and a person would not age once the said person has not found his or her “soulmate” when reaching the age of 22. He also inferred that those who were “bonded” or those who have found their soulmates would be stronger physically and mentally, but would age, supporting the “growing old together” sentiment._

_In 1987, the world produced further studies that supported Black’s theory, and the concept of soulmates, soulmarks, and soulbonds were widely accepted. The terms Marked and Bonded were coined by Black, with the Marked defined as “people who have not yet found their soulmate; unaging”, and the Bonded as “two people with the complementary marks; aging together”._

_In 1990, the world started organizations that helped the “Marked” find their respective mates. The South Korean government followed the lead of the other countries and also made a department specializing in the “soulmate” concept, the Department of Mark Registration and Verification._

_In 1998, the world encouraged the separation of the Marked from the Bonded, making separate living quarters for the two. The Borough, or the overall metropolis of a region was divided into two districts: the Northern, for the Marked, and the Southern, for the Bonded._

 

It was 2017, and the world let the marks on their skin dictate their life.

 

 

  
♢♢♢

 

 

  
“I’m not in the mood for any of your sweet talks. Tell me the statistics.”

Ong Seongwoo was not having a good day. First, he woke up with his digital clock blinking the red numbers 8:01, signaling that he was going to be late for his work. Not that he really cared; he was the director of their bureau, after all. Combine that with the fact that his head felt like it’s going to be ripped in half, though, and he had the perfect recipe for an unbearable day ahead.

 _Shouldn’t have tried to outdrink everyone last night_ , he thought.

Dragging his feet towards the bathroom, he languidly finished his morning rituals, not caring that he was taking precious time to get ready. While finishing his makeup, (just a simple foundation and concealer to take the attention off of his bloated face), his attention was once again diverted to the mark near his left collarbone, just near his heart. A crown.

He often questioned that. Other people had marks as intricate and complicated as a tiger, a doll, or a complex geometric pattern. But what he had was a simple crown, nothing more and nothing less – just a mere outline of a little crown. He’s not particularly in to the soulmate thing, but still; for a complicated man like him, shouldn’t he have a complex mark as well?

Looking at his reflection on the mirror he inwardly berated himself. It’s better that way. _Twenty years without aging, fifteen years as the head of a bureau? It’s not so bad without a soulmate, self._

The drive all the way to the Department of Mark Registration and Verification was a particularly eventless one. The only drama that caught his eye was an overturned truck on the opposite lane, which wouldn’t affect his route.

Pulling over, he smiled as he noticed that the other reserved parking slots for the other directors were empty. _Looks like I’m the only one who survived last night’s mess_ _of a party_ , he took note.

The government-run Department of Mark Registration and Verification, or DMRV, as its employees shortened it into, was a go-to for _literal_ soul-searchers. In the time and age where soulbonds exist, those who haven’t found their fated partner employ the expertise of the Department in order to find more information about their soulmate. With its high ceiling, earthy color tones, and bright lights, the Department welcomed all kinds of soul-searchers.

The Department was divided into five levels: the first floor lobby, the second floor Information & Registration desk, the third floor Mark Verification bureau, the fourth floor Results & Payments section, and the fifth floor [employees only], Documents bureau. The “Man in Black”, as people call Seongwoo, was in charge as the Director of the Documents Bureau, where he handled all of the classified information regarding the soulbonds, soulmarks, and the biodata of every person in the Region the DMRV was located, which was in Seongwoo’s case, Seoul.

The establishment of the Department was first met with criticism. Some argued that they would rather find their soulmate by chance, or by fate, but some are urgent to have the benefits soulmates have – the discounted housing, the shared expenses, the shorter working hours for Bonded people because “family bonding should be the priority of everyone so Bonded people should get off work early and not work on last Fridays of the month”, many more. Seongwoo had always thought that marrying nowadays only happen because of all the privileges they might have, and not because of the love they had for each other.

Getting inside the Department, Seongwoo should have known that getting up late and hangovers were the least of his worries. An intern bumped into him when he was walking towards the elevator. The elevator music was horrid and significantly worsened his pounding head. As soon as he reached the fifth floor, where the Documents Bureau was located, he was immediately bombarded by his assistant with issues and problems he would rather prefer to know when properly sober, thank you very much.

“Stay quiet for a second, will you? Bring me some coffee, and then talk to me. My head hurts even more because of you,” he interjected.

His assistant, finally sensing his fouler than the usual mood, merely squeaked a response and scurried off to bring him what he wanted.

That was how he got in this situation, with his bumbling assistant (after having brought him coffee) trying to appease his mood by complimenting him.

Psh. He knew that bad news were to come, might as well give it to him in one go.

“I’m not in the mood for any of your sweet talks. Tell me the statistics,” he repeated.

“W-What?”

“You’re holding onto that document as if your life depended on it, your eyes keep shaking, and you’ve been stuttering and trying to get on my good side for the past few minutes. You’ve only managed to annoy me more. I won’t repeat again, tell me the statistics,” Seongwoo answered.

“Another almost bonded Marked dead, Mr. Ong; the eighth in the year so far. This one came to the Department a month ago, and the details of his soulmate was supposed to come out tomorrow,” his assistant, Jonghyun, nervously reported.

“His soulmate? The soulmate’s another woman, then?”

“The dead Marked’s actually a man, but rumors from the Mark Analysis Bureau downstairs say that his soulmate was a man too.”

Seongwoo scoffed. “A rumor? Don’t you have anything more concrete than that?”

“N-No, sir.”

“Then get out of my office. Besides, let the police deal with that case. We just handle the documents. Nothing more, nothing less. Understood?”

His assistant only nodded in agreement and quickly filed out of his office.

Eight.

Eight murders in a year, which makes it the fourth one this month.

 _It’s just May. We’re not even halfway the year_ , he tiredly thought.

The murders started relatively simple. The details were the same. All women, all were from the Marked group, all visited the Department at least a month before they were killed. The first three were the same with the way of how they were murdered – poison in their drink, as what an investigation agency (Was it DM Hwang, or TN Jang, or DN Kang?) discovered.

However, the fourth and fifth one did not die from poison. This put everyone in a loop, with various agencies, private and government-run, trying to one-up the other and identify how the victim was killed. The same agency found out that the fourth one died from a drug – a particularly newly invented one, a drug that was not registered yet already found in the black market.

The sixth and seventh murders were still unsolved in terms of how they were killed, and now another one is reported.

Oh, and another thing the murders all had in common? Their killer (or killers) was still unidentified. This killer really does have a lot of time in his or her hands.

Seongwoo can feel another headache coming. It’s not even noon.

 

***

 

The killer smiled while reading the headline in the newspaper.

_EIGHTH MARKED MURDERED: KILLER AND CAUSE OF DEATH STILL UNKNOWN, POLICE AND MEDIA IN PANIC._

Laughing, the murderer spoke. “I make people panic? I’m flattered.”

As the one responsible for the killings scanned the other pages, only one thought ran in their mind. Sipping the now cold tea the maid brought, the killer muttered.

  
“Who’s next?”


	2. 이

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the beautiful mv was too beautiful [not to mention heartbreaking and for filos out there, bitin] that i was disoriented for days

**Ong** : i need a drink wru

 **Jae** : wth it’s only 12:13

 **Jae** : i haven’t even had lunch

 **Jae** : r u ok??

 **Ong** : i’m fine, how bout later

 **Jae** : got an overtime 2day

 **Jae** : i’ll be finished @ 11 pm

 **Jae** : u still up for that?

 **Ong** : yeah, see u at the usual?

 **Jae** : k, don’t finish the drinks  
before i even get there

 **Ong** : not gonna make any promises

   
Seongwoo locked his phone and leaned on his chair, closing his eyes. It’s been two weeks since the eighth Marked, Cha Eunwoo, was murdered. Unlike the other murders, the details regarding his source of death was still unknown, sending those trying to solve the case in a state of restlessness. Since then, the police and the media had been lurking inside the Department of Mark Registration and Verification, hoping for any scoop or information regarding the case.

To say that they were stressing him out was an understatement. The once calm and orderly Department was now a zoo; with gawking people, flashes of the camera, and noise surrounding the place. A journalist even tried to get his opinion on the case earlier, trying to pry off any details from him. Needless to say, the said journalist would not be coming back to the DMRV anytime soon.

A loud knock broke him out of his reverie, as to which he spoke, "Come in”.

The man who entered Seongwoo’s office wasn’t someone he knew. He was tall, had shaggy light brown hair, and his ill-fitting clothes (he could already tell that this man had no fashion sense) suggested that he was on the rather muscly side. _[S_ _eongwoo wasn’t checking the guy out. Nope. He wasn’t eyeing the guy’s little mole just under his eye, or his broad shoulders and thick thighs that filled out his baggy clothes. He really wasn’t.]_ His youthful looks were in contrast to his eyes that looked far too weary. Seongwoo’s experiences also suggest that the man before him was a Marked that had not yet found his Bonded. He internally reminded himself to scold his assistant later for letting someone he doesn’t know inside his office.

“Good morning Ong Seongwoo ssi” the visitor said as he held his hand for a handshake.

Seongwoo plastered his practiced smile and tentatively shook the hand of the guest, “It seems that you know me, which is opposed to what I can say about you. If I may, who are you again?”

“I’m Kang Daniel, from that investigation agency near both the Southern and Northern district of the Borough. We constantly tried to contact you for our questions, we‘re grateful that you finally accepted,” he answered.

Seongwoo racked his brain for the time he agreed to be interviewed by the investigation agency. He honestly couldn’t remember any instance where he approved the agency’s request, but decided to just grill his assistant later and be civil first.

“You’re from that DN Kang agency right? I remember now, please take a seat,” he offered. “What do you want to ask?”

The guest, Kang Daniel, looked uncomfortable as he fully took in the room he was in and sat down. _Guy must not be used to the lavish things,_ Seongwoo thought.

Crossing his arms, Seongwoo repeated, “Kang Daniel ssi, what do you want to ask?”

Apparently gathering his courage, he looked at him straight in the eyes.

“It’s not really a question but… You’re one of the investigated people our agency’s looking in to, for the death of Cha Eunwoo.”

 _That was blunt_. Seongwoo’s once neutral expression turned to a smirk.

“You sure do know how to make a joke. Go on then. What are your evidences?”

Undeterred by his complacency, Daniel continued.

“You were unattended for during 12:15 to 1:15 am on the day the murder was done, which is the suspected time of death of Cha Eunwoo.”

“What a nice correlation you’ve got there! Here’s what I’m gonna say; one, I was as drunk as Dionysus that night. I can’t even stand on my two feet, much less kill a person. Two, am I the only person unattended for during that time? The whole North district, and I’m the only one you pinpoint at?” Seongwoo reiterated, button-down shirt riding low as he leaned down.

“No you weren’t the only one, but you were one of the few who has constant and easy access to his files, being the head of the Documents Bureau, and all.”

“And I being the director would explain the murders how? You’re stretching it a bit too thin now, investigator,” he retorted. “Come on. Give me something to work at.”

As if not hearing his little comments, Daniel continued.

“Wait, aren’t you informed, Ong Seongwoo ssi?”

“That’s why I’m asking, isn’t it?”

“You’re one of the people suspected to be his soulmate,” he finally said. “Anything to work at now, Seongwoo ssi?”

There was a hint of smugness on his tone, as if celebrating the fact that he finally cornered him.

“What?”

Seongwoo was dumbfounded. His careful mask of indifference slipped, with confusion clouding his eyes. _Him? As one of the soulmates for Cha Eunwoo?_

It’s not that he was shocked that they would consider a man to be Cha Eunwoo’s soulmate. It was not uncommon for same sex couples to be matched. Heck, even Seongwoo had his own share of relationships (read: flings) with men before. But, he had read Cha’s file before, and he definitely wouldn’t think of him as someone he would be Bonded with.

Cha Eunwoo was a religious man – conservative, polite, a goody-two-shoes, and dare he say it, prude. Definitely not in line with Seongwoo’s lifestyle, nor was he his type. He even thought that because of his religious lifestyle and upbringing, Eunwoo would never consider having another man as his partner.

He stayed still for a short moment, with the said mask coming up again.

“That’s right, Ong Seongwoo ssi, our agency’s connections to the Mark Verification Bureau below told us that you were one of the final five Marked they discovered to be Cha Eunwoo’s prospective soulmates,” Daniel explained.

“You really are thick-skinned to say that in front of my face. The MVB’s not supposed to release documents like that, especially to nosy people who stick their noses up other people’s lives. They can be sued for that, and you decide to go ahead and blab it to me?”

The said thick-faced man merely leaned on his seat and crossed his arms. “Ah, but I know that you won’t go around and report that to others though. Once the word gets out that the MVB leaked information, _classified information_ , the whole Department you’re working at can go down, and that includes you.”

 _The hell to this man and his cheek_.

“Why are you telling me all of this?” Seongwoo finally snapped.

“We just wanted to talk to you, Ong Seongwoo ssi. You were the easiest to contact out of the prospective soulmates of Cha Eunwoo, so you were our first choice,” he reasoned.

“And by soulmates, you mean suspects,” Seongwoo laughed. “Sorry, hon, but I’m innocent until proven guilty.”

“Well, with the attitude you’ve shown today, Sir, you sure don’t give off the vibe of an innocent,” Daniel retorted.

“Oh, honey, if you’ve done enough research on me, you’ll find out that I don’t care.”

The two of them just stared at each other, never backing down.

“If there isn’t anything else, I think that would be all. You can leave now.” His tone suggested not a request, rather, a tall order he required him to fulfill. Seeing how Seongwoo looked like he was about to curse at him in any minute, Daniel swiftly stood up, bowed, and walked out of the room.

When the door closed, Seongwoo found himself pacing inside his office, cursing at every object his eyes fell upon – which was coincidentally a piece of paper on the chair Kang Daniel previously sat upon. On closer inspection, the paper seemed to be a calling card. Seongwoo was about to tear the said piece of paper, when he heard a soft knock against his door, alerting him of his assistant’s presence. Remembering that it was Jonghyun’s fault that the man got inside his office in the first place, he pocketed the card, and proceeded to reprimand his incompetent assistant.

  
***

  
Seongwoo had already been waiting for Jaehwan to come at least an hour ago, and to say that he’s soon going to blow was an understatement.

  
**Ong** : hey

 **Ong** : heyyyyy

 **Ong** : KIM JAEHWAN WER R U

 **Ong** : it’s been an hourrrrrr

 **Ong** : im gonna drink w/o u

 **Ong** : i had a trashy day

 **Ong** : i need someone 2 talk 2

 **Ong** : r u not gonna answer me

 **Ong** : fine

  
His texts to Jaehwan remained unreplied, and he soon gave up trying to contact his best friend, reasoning out that his sleepy as hell friend dozed off while at work.

He drank by himself, his head swimming with all the alcohol he consumed; ears deaf with the loud music.

As he trudged back to his apartment, he uncharacteristically hoped for a better tomorrow, and thought of ways to nag at Jaehwan for not showing up at the club.

 

  
***

 

  
Nursing himself from the hangover that subsequently came, Seongwoo turned on his television to watch the morning news, a cup of coffee in hand.

But then a familiar face in the television efficiently sobered him up.

_Please, no. Don’t let this be true._

Jaehwan had always joked that if not for his parents’ demands that he should be an accountant, Seongwoo would see his face in the television, singing and dancing onstage. Seongwoo may have joked around that Jaehwan’s voice sounded like a dying animal, but he wholly believed that his best friend would make it to the television screen. He had the looks, the talent, the variety skills, and the personality of a celebrity.

He just didn’t expect that he would see Jaehwan in the television _this way_.

Seongwoo could faintly register the breaking of the cup he was holding earlier as he saw the pale face of his best friend blaring in the morning news, eyes opened and lifeless.

 

_BREAKING: ACCOUNTANT KIM JAEHWAN ADDED TO THE LIST OF SERIAL MURDERS; NINTH MARKED TO BE KILLED BY STILL UNKNOWN SUSPECT._

 

  
***

 

  
Seongwoo had been in a daze since that morning. He still went to work, as a way to distract him. Still, onlookers couldn’t deny that he was a mess. The usually well-oiled machine that was Ong Seongwoo was quiet, spacing out, and looked like on the verge of breaking down.

“Had a fun night, Mr. Ong? You looked like you went straight to the office after clubbing,” his assistant, Jonghyun, remarked as he brought him coffee.

“W-What?”

“I mean, it looks like you didn’t even go home. Your pants today’s the one you wore yesterday,” he continued. “Anyways, have a good day Mr. Ong.”

Jonghyun took his director’s silence as unamusement, and he quickly scurried off after seeing the hardened look on Seongwoo’s face.

Seongwoo rarely cried – never cried, most likely. But as he remembered the pale face of his best friend yet again, a fresh batch of tears leaked out of his eyes. Reaching inside his pocket, he tried to grab the handkerchief he knew was stashed. Instead, what grazed his hand was the crumpled yet smooth texture of paper, and he instantly remembered what he shoved in his pocket the day before.

Taking out the business card, he read the contact details of his past visitor, seemingly mocking him.

 

_010 – 9508 – 9612_

_010 – 9508 – 9612_

_010 – 9508 – 9612_

 

Gathering his breath, he took out his phone and sent a text to the one person he loathed just a moment ago.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm sorry for the ooc kang daniel but i couldn't resist ;(

**Author's Note:**

> i love soulmate AUs and this honestly came from a thought, "what if a world with soulmates isn't as picture perfect as we imagine it to be?", and i went from there.
> 
> also, i made my own timeline of sorts which was the italicized sort of prologue at the beginning, so that there would be a little background. any names mentioned were purely coincidental.


End file.
